Two years after sacking disgraced former Minister Konrad Mizzi from Labour’s parliamentary group over a raft of alleged abuses and corruption, Prime Minister Robert Abela is still paying his father, Lawrence, to act as chairman of a government entity dealing with redundant Air Malta employees.
The Shift is informed that following the last general elections, Abela dictated that the State entity Resources Support and Services Ltd (RSSL) be transferred directly to his portfolio at the OPM from the finance ministry.
At the same time, he gave orders for Konrad Mizzi’s father to remain chairman of the company, “at least for the time being”.
OPM sources told The Shift that despite Lawrence Mizzi being 70 years old, “the PM would like to use his services in a very delicate situation as he knows that most of the employees are to be made redundant, and this can facilitate the process”.
The prime minister himself was the lawyer on an agreement reached with Air Malta pilots that also failed when he the government’s legal consultant.
Lawrence Mizzi spent most of his working life at Air Malta and is familiar with most of the 577 workers who applied for an alternative job with the government and are now being told to forget this agreement and take a golden handshake instead.
Established in 2003, RSSL Ltd is a fully-owned government company established to manage redundant employees from other government entities such as the former employees of Kalaxlokk and Malta Drydocks.
The company has been tasked with handling redundant Air Malta employees for past restructuring exercises, which have all failed.
While putting these employees on its books, RSSL then distributed them to other government entities and authorities, as well as local councils and NGOs.
There is no actual work for these employees on the state’s payroll. Most are given odd, unproductive jobs.
The Shift has this week revealed that the government is renouncing its pre-election commitment to Air Malta employees who were guaranteed a government job if they agree to a Voluntary Employment Transfer Scheme pushed before the general elections in March.
After receiving 577 applications, Finance Minister Caruana is having second thoughts, suddenly changing the rules of the scheme into a golden handshake to terminate employment. Staff who spoke to The Shift felt they had been “betrayed” by the Labour Party in a push to get votes before the general elections, insisting that the agreement they signed with the government must be respected.
The General Workers Union, which represents most of the employees at Air Malta, has so far not informed its members of the latest government manoeuvres.
So far, only a handful of employees closely connected to ministers or the Labour Party have been given another government job. All those who signed up for the recent scheme were promised government jobs for life with the same financial package they had with the airline.
This has caused problems since some Air Malta employees have packages that are higher than equivalent grades in the public service.
Another election promise going down the drain. But unfortunately these type of promises gain votes.
Anyway, it was a promise that was not feasible in the first place.
1. Because government is in many areas over employed, with no tangible results shown.
2. Is it possible that the government, prior to declaring this scheme did not realise that there would be salary inequality?
Amateurish administration and planning at it’s worse. Any thought of retraining these unfortunate employees in other skills they possess. Giving them the opportunity to find a new satisfying career in their lives.
It is only obvious that the older employees should have an early retirement lump sum and pension. €200k minimum.
But the younger employees could be given an new opportunity in life, with state subsidy to help them start a new career.
Air Malta employees voted for Labour to get this deal at tax payers expense. The scorpion and the frog comes to mind. Need to be more careful what you wish for!!
IL-QAWL MALTI JGHID u din taplika ghal kull haddiem li jezisti f’pajjizna. LI TIZRA TAHSAD FIL-HAJJA. Din hija l’istess storja tal-bojod u s-suwed. Min jahtaf dak li hu ta’haddiehor ma jkollux kuntentizza fil-hajja anzi sahta fil hajja tieghu stess.
L Akbar htija hija ta’ Konrad Mizzi.
Dan meta Ministru, iffirma ftehim kollettiv bil patt li kien ser jiftah kumpanija gdida bl isem Aviation Services.
Ghal dan zied il haddiema Full Time u ziedilhom il pagi b’19.5% f’tul ta’ 4 snin.
L-ironija hi li l kompetitur kien qed ihallas lill haddiema tieghu nofs dik il paga.
Gara li l kumpanija Aviation Services mhux vera nfethet u l haddiema baqaw kollha Airmalta, inkluz ukoll dawk li minn part time dawwruh u sar full time.
Dan filwaqt li l Airmalta kienet falluta Konrad u Ronald il PS Mizzi kienu qed jghidu xort ohra, u kemm sejra tajjeb.
Il fatti llum juru mod iehor, bi Clyde Caruana jghidlna li din il kumpanija mhux xejn ghajr Fireplace.
Il Verita’ hi li llum ukoll il haddiema trasferiti fl-Rssl mhumiex qed jigu trattati bl istess mod.
Il GWU konxja ta’ dan pero ghazlet is silenzju ghax komplici f’dan it tahwid.
Flok irsistiet li ssir gustizzja ma kull haddiem bis sewwa u bix xieraq, harset li thares dak li jaqbel lilha.
Ghal GWU l importanti li l haddiem ikollu xoghol u jhallas il kontribuzzjoni tal membership il bqija caw caw.
Ta’ min isemmi li waqt li bosta haddiema tul il pandemija tilfu l impjieg, dawn il haddiema tal Airmalta qajla ressqu lejn l ajruport minhabba r restrizzjonijiet, pero xorta baqaw jiehdu z zidiet mhabbra tal collective agreement li kien iffirma Konrad Mizzi.
Dawn il-haddiema mhallsa aktar mic-civil. Li timpjegahom mac-civil tkun qieghed tiddiskrimina mac-civil ghax tnejn min-nies ha jkunu qed jispiccaw jghamlu l-istess xoghol b’zewg salarji differenti. Pandimonju jinqala.
The Gov of Robert Abela is so full of crooks, incompetent labourites occupying top positions and a cabinet with no talent, that it has become almost impossible for the PM to control the situation.
Poor governance, low standards of living, lack of justice, corruption, and impunity are now rooted in our culture and part of our new reality,
lorry ma xbajtx terda mill- air malta?
Ilu jerda mill-Air Malta sa tal-inqas minn 1974, meta Mintoff kien ghamlu wiehed mill-leading factotums hemm grazzi ghall-fatt li mart Mizzi u Mintoff kienu hbieb kbar, u MHUX ghaliex Mizzi kellu xi kwalifici ta’ barra minn hawn aktar minn Maltin ohra.
Those who remember Lawrence Mizzi in the days of Air Supplies and Services, negotiating the purchase of wines and spirits, would fail him miserably in any due diligence assessment.
Konrad the crook, has taken distorted genes, surely ‘like father, like son’.